Activists lead three-day march on Brussels against EU's 'deregulation wave'

“People over Profits” and "Climate Justice" are painted on shields and written on flags. Protesters gathered on Tuesday (23 September) near Place Schuman in the heart of the European Quarter in Brussels. Right in front of the protesters is the headquarters of the European Commission and the seat of the European Council.

After a six-hour and 20km march on Tuesday, the protesters have reached the Belgian capital. They wanted to be heard at the heart of EU decision-making.

In total, they have been marching from Maastricht (the Netherlands) to Brussels for the last three days, since 21 September, in what they call the “Back to the Future March”.

They want to draw attention to what they call a "deregulation-wave" in the European Union.

For the protesters, sustainability goals and social rights are at risk under the guise of competitiveness.

For the EU commission, this is all about the simplification of European legislation. For that, the EU executive has unveiled in recent months six so-called ‘Omnibus’ simplification packages filled with revisions to reduce the number of rules for businesses and sectors.

Last week, EU commission president Ursula von der Leyen attended an event in Berlin where she talked to leading German industry and trade associations. There she stated: “We see eye to eye on the goal. What is stopping you? What is holding you back? What makes life difficult for you? And that we will try to get rid of.” Possible obstacles for industry that the president mentioned were sustainability reporting and supply chains.

Among the protesters was Lara Wolters, a Dutch socialist MEP, who has been one of the lead MEPs on a due diligence file, which aims to promote sustainable and responsible business practices in European companies and their global supply chains.

“Deregulation is not going to solve the problems it's supposed to solve. If we are serious about making Europe more robust, more future-proof, then this is not the way to do it," Wolters told EUobserver.

"All we're doing here is selling out human rights and environmental progress that we made in the name of a more competitive economy. The problem is that it's not going to work,” she also said.

The protesters also argued that the issue of deregulation is not just an internal matter for the EU.

If Europe weakens its environmental and social protections, others will follow suit, undermining global sustainability goals and the EU’s role as a leader in climate and social justice policy.

“I'm here because I'm very concerned about the direction of travel that the EU is taking. Especially when it comes to deregulation of a lot of really vital climate and human rights,” added one of the protesters.

Many protesters feel reassured in their demands by the news that wandered through Brussels on Tuesday. 

The commission will now delay for one year the anti-deforestation regulation, which would force importers of certain goods like palm oil, coffee or cocoa, among others, to prove that the products were not grown on deforested land. This follows another one delay announced last year.

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